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Transportable control room for remote disaster management scenarios

Effective, reliable communication is essential in all emergency situations, but in the case of disaster management in remote locations it has not always been a simple exercise.

To ease the process, Multisource Telecoms has custom designed and built an integral mobile radio control room suitable for all emergency situations that call for the establishment of temporary on-site communication.

The concept behind the transportable radio control centre, aptly nicknamed 'Robocop', was to provide a reliable source of communication that could be rapidly implemented when the need arose.

The application requirements necessitated the engineering of a sturdy, robust, durable housing for the base station and its four radios. To this end a strong steel cabinet mounted on heavy duty roller castors was manufactured to hold the radio communication equipment.

The cabinet is fitted with carry handles which aid in it being wheeled to a vehicle for transportation to site. Once on site, the front and back doors are removed to allow easy access to the base station and radios for operational purposes.

"One of the most important factors in the field is that there is no guarantee regarding access to electricity, and the unit is fitted with a substantial battery bank to allow eight hours continuous operation," says Ian Coleman, key accounts director of Multisource Telecoms.

Ian Coleman, Multisource Telecoms

To ensure that the battery bank remains fully charged, the system is equipped with an integral power supply and charger. In addition integral extension leads and an external battery lead will allow the base station to be run off a vehicle battery after prolonged usage.

Coleman says that a number of factors had to be taken into account when engineering the Robocop, including equipping the system with adequate antennae to ensure that the communication system could function reliably and efficiently.

In addition to the standard antennae, the system is equipped with a collapsible mast that will extend when clamped to the side of the cabinet.

Robocop is supplied standard with four radios operating in all conventional bands, which will allow communication on two dedicated channels as well as on the SAPS channels and other utility or protection service UHF channels. The system has been designed to allow four operators to man the radio control centre simultaneously, each with its own interface panel offering headset, microphone and speakers.

To date, one Robocop has been supplied to the Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality and two to the Durban Disaster Management Centre. The system has been designed in such a manner as to allow modifications depending on individual customer requirements.

Examples of modifications could include a two way radio with GSM interface which will facilitate cross patching to cellphones and landlines. The system can also be equipped with a cross channel interface to allow joint operations and cross communication cooperation.

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